Systems and methods for customer administered calling controls

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems for customer administered calling controls in an institutional setting comprising receiving customer control information from a customer outside of an institution where the customer control information comprising one or more control mechanisms and providing a resident of the institution, through a telephone network, phone services subject to the one or more control mechanisms.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.61/515,441 filed on Aug. 5, 2011, which is incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present subject matter relates to the administration and applicationof custom calling controls to be administered by customers and users ofan institutional telecommunication system. More particularly, thepresent subject matter relates to the administration and application ofcustom calling controls for the purpose of enabling called parties toplace self-imposed limitations on calling activity received from aninstitutional telecommunication system, optionally allowing suchlimitations as calling activity only by pre-authorized call recipients,preset limits for the volume or cost of calls over a given period oftime, predetermined windows of time for allowing or disallowing callingactivity, providing for notification alerts related to such callingactivity, and providing for multiple calling profiles per called number,each such profile having its own distinct limitations and behaviors.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the context of the operation of telecommunication systems that servea residential institution such as a correctional confinement facility,many problems are traditionally observed relating to the abuse and/orthe inability to effectively manage calling activity by users of thetelecommunication system. Traditionally, controls to guard against abuseor misuse have been imposed and administered by the residentialinstitution or by the telecommunications provider, while the called, ornon-resident, party is only able to control calling activity by way ofblocking or unblocking their account, or by adding or removing funds ina crude attempt to manage call volume and costs. Taking intoconsideration that the majority of calling activity from residentialinstitutions is funded by the called, non-resident party, it becomesparticularly desirable that the called party also be able to participatein the management of such calling activity.

In one common example, called parties, or “customers,” are frequentlyunaware of the exact amount of call charges they have incurred over aperiod of time, resulting, for example, in the sudden loss of serviceonce the account's funds have been exhausted or in the receipt of anunexpectedly high telephone bill. Similarly, called parties frequentlypay a given amount on a prepaid account with the expectation that itwill last a specific period of time, only to have the funds be depletedlong before the expected date, with the called party having no morefinancial resources available to further fund the account in theinterim, thereby preventing contact with friends or loved ones. As anattempted countermeasure against this, customers can make small,frequent payments to their account so as not to exhaust all of theirfinancial resources prematurely. This method, however, carries asignificant disadvantage to the customer in that they incur additionalprocessing fees each time a payment is made to the account. As a resultof making a larger number of smaller payments, a higher percentage ofeach dollar spent is consumed by payment processing fees, and a smallerpercentage is available for actual telecommunications services.

In another common example, customers frequently desire to placediffering restrictions or limitations on specific members of thehousehold when receiving incoming phone calls from a residentialinstitution. For example, a mother with a son who is incarcerated maywish to place restrictions on the amount of time or money that can bespent conversing with certain members of the family, while she herselfmay wish to have no restrictions imposed upon her own activity. Furtherstill, the mother may wish to completely prevent calling activity byanyone present in the household who is not authorized for such activity,regardless of whether or not they happen to answer an incoming call fromthe resident. Similarly, the mother may also wish to limit callingactivity to the hours of the day when she herself is at home, and isable to monitor the calling activity in person. Furthermore, in someinstances, the mother may also desire to receive some form ofnotification when calling activity has taken place by other members ofthe household who are authorized to receive calls on her account.

Yet another common example of the need fbr customer-administered callingcontrols can be found in the frequent desire by called parties to havean automatic attempt made to complete the call from the residentialinstitution to a second or third number, such as a cell phone or a worktelephone, in the event that the party is unavailable at the originalcalled number. In this example, it may also be desirable to consolidatethe call charges back to the original number called by the resident atthe institution. Often, customers will attempt to obtain this level offunctionality through the use of call-forwarding features from theoriginal number to the number at which they expect to be available. Thismethod, however, has its own disadvantages. First, the customer must bediligent in constantly enabling, disabling, and re-directingcall-forwarding features. Frequently, calls are missed due to errantcall-forwarding settings. The second disadvantage brought about by thismethod is that when call-forwarding features outside of the residentialtelecommunications system are utilized, the management of theresidential institution, as well as the telecommunications provider,lose visibility as to exactly which terminal number actually receivedthe call. This is particularly troublesome in the case of correctionalconfinement facilities, where telephone activity is highly controlledand often investigated for evidence of criminal activity.

Still another common example of the need for customer-administeredcalling controls can be found in the frequent desire by the callingparty; or resident user, to speak only with a specific person at thecalled number. In this case, for instance, an incarcerated man may wish,at a particular moment, to speak only with his wife, but not with hermother who may also be in the same household and, in fact, may also bean authorized user of the telephone account.

Yet another example of the need for customer-administered callingcontrols arises from the creation of Parent/Child accounts allowing agroup of phone numbers to be associated to a master account of whichfunds are shared. Multiple challenges and problems occur in thiscontext. For example, if a daughter is linked to a parent's account andshe decides to put money directly on her account is this money shared onthe account or only available to the daughter? If only available to thedaughter but the account has shared funds available which funds areconsumed first? If shared on the whole account and the daughter wants arefund how are her funds refunded?

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The limitations of the prior art are overcome and a technical advance ismade in accordance with the present subject matter, detailed embodimentsof which are presented in the following detailed description.

In some embodiments, an automated software system introduces a number ofnovel features, techniques, and methods into the telecommunicationssystem and makes use of various processes, some of which are operatedindependently, and some of which advantageously integrate with existingsystems in order to obtain maximum efficiency, transparency, andaccountability.

In some embodiments, a Customer Profile Interface process is provided toenable customers to manage control features that are applied to callsplaced to a particular called number associated with the account.

In some embodiments, a Call Control process is provided. The CallControl process accesses information relative to Called Party Profilesassociated with the requested destination telephone number when a callis placed by a resident.

In some embodiments, a Called Number Validation process is provided. TheCalled Number Validation process responds to requests from the CallControl process for relevant Called Party Profile data, assimilates thedata, and transmits the data in a particular format to the Call Controlprocess.

In some embodiments, a Notification process is provided. TheNotification process responds to signals from the Call Control processindicating that a notification is needed to a particular customer.

In some embodiments, a Reporting process is provided. The Reportingprocess responds to requests from multiple interfaces and systems,including, but not limited to, residential administrative staffinterfaces, telecommunications provider interfaces, and the CustomerProfile interface process.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other advantages of illustrative embodiments of the presentsubject matter will be apparent to those skilled in the art by referenceto the following detailed description and the accompanying drawingfigures, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system in certain embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating functions according to certainembodiments.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating functions according to certainembodiments.

FIG. 4 is a screenshot illustrating customer-administered call controloptions according to certain embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a screenshot illustrating customer-administered call controloptions according to certain embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Detailed embodiments are disclosed herein. However, it is to beunderstood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary and thatdifferent embodiments are possible. The figures are not necessarily toscale, and some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show detailsof particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functionaldetails disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, butmerely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis forteaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the presentdisclosure.

In accordance with one aspect of illustrative embodiments of the presentsubject matter, customer-administered calling controls are accomplishedin a residential institution telecommunications context by an automatedcomputer software system that is integrated at multiple levels with theoperation and provision of the telecommunication and billing services,and with other particular components and databases contained within theinstitutional management software systems.

An automated software system providing one or more of the featuresdisclosed herein may be included in or added to a telecommunicationssystem in various ways, and may make use of various modules, some ofwhich are operated independently, and some of which advantageouslyintegrate with existing systems in order to obtain maximum efficiency,transparency and accountability. Components or modules providing one ormore of the features disclosed herein may be provided via one or morecomputers or other electronic devices located at an institutionalfacility, at centralized and/or remote telephone network or computernetwork locations, located at any other location, or located at anycombination of such locations.

An exemplary embodiment provides messaging processes in an institutionalsetting. FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system 100 comprising amessaging service device 120, which could be operated by atelecommunications service provider (“TSP”), with a processor 121 andcomputer readable media and storage capabilities 122. Stored within thismain system are appropriate hardware, firmware, and/or software forimplementing a customer profile interface process 123, call controlprocess 124, called number validation process 125, notification process126, and reporting process 127. Coupled to the messaging service device120 is a database 130 comprising called party profiles and otherrecords. Also coupled to the messaging service device 120 is a server140 comprising a processor 141 and computer readable media and storagecapabilities 142. Server 140 is accessible by a client device 110 acrossa suitable network 105, for example a local area network or theInternet. Such access could be wired or wireless, as is well known toone of ordinary skill in the art. Client device 110 comprises aprocessor 111 as well as computer readable media and storagecapabilities 112 with client applications such as a web browser 113.Messaging service device 120 may also provide for interactive voicerecognition (“IVR”) functionality 150. Messaging service device 120 isalso coupled to a one or more phones 160 accessible to residents of theinstitution. Similarly one or more non-resident phones 161 may also becoupled to the main system 120. Such coupling is via any suitabletelephone network, as would be understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art. Institution residents may also optionally access messagingservice device 120 through a wireless device (not shown) or through akiosk (not shown) as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in theart.

Applications and other electronic content execute or are otherwise usedon the exemplary computer devices 110, 120, and 140 and are shown asfunctional components or modules. As is known to one of skill in theart, such applications and content may be resident in any suitablecomputer-readable medium and execute on any suitable processor. Forexample, as shown the client device 120 comprises a computer-readablemedium 122 such as a random access memory (“RAM”) coupled to a processor121 that executes computer-executable program instructions and/oraccesses information stored in memory (not shown). Such a processor 121may comprise a microprocessor, an ASIC, a state machine, or otherprocessor, and can be any of a number of computer processors. Such aprocessor can comprise or may be in communication with acomputer-readable medium that stores instructions that, when executed bythe processor, cause the processor to perform the steps describedherein.

A computer-readable medium may comprise, but is not limited to, anelectronic, optical, magnetic, or other storage device capable ofproviding a processor with computer-readable instructions. Otherexamples comprise, but are not limited to, a floppy disk, CD-ROM, DVD,magnetic disk, memory chip, ROM, RAM, an ASIC, configured processor,optical storage, magnetic tape or other magnetic storage, or any othermedium from which a computer processor can read instructions. Theinstructions may comprise processor-specific instructions generated by acompiler and/or an interpreter from code written in any suitablecomputer-programming language, including, for example, C, C++, C#,Visual Basic, Java, Python, Pert, JavaScript, and ActionScript.

The client device 110 may also comprise a number of external or internaldevices such as a mouse, a CD-ROM, DVD, a keyboard, a display, audiospeakers, one or more microphones, or any other input or output devices.Device 110 could be a personal computing device, a mobile device, or anyother type of electronic devices appropriate for providing one or moreof the features described herein.

Phones 160, 161 could be any type of phone appropriate for providing oneor more of the features described herein.

The processes operating on system 120 are described in further detailbelow.

Customer Profile Interface Process

In some embodiments, the Customer Profile Interface process providesmethods and techniques to enable customers to access and interact withthe Customer Profile interface process by way of various means,including, but not limited to, web-based browser applications, customsoftware applications designed for mobile telephone or tablet computeruse, specifically formatted electronic mail or SMS messages, andinteractive voice response telephony systems.

In some embodiments, the Customer Profile Interface process providesmeans for a customer (also referred to herein as “user”) to create,modify, or delete “Called Party Profiles” to be associated with theaccount. Any given account can contain one or multiple Called PartyProfiles, each with its own specific behaviors and/or limitationsapplied. Each Called Party Profile is associated with a specific PIN,which may be either assigned by Customer Profile Interface process 123or selected manually by the user, optionally subjected to minimumpassword strength requirements. Further, Customer Profile Interfaceprocess 123 provides methods for modifying each Called Party′ Profile sothat limitations and behaviors may be specified. Settings can beprovided to specify maximum calling activity limits, including, but notlimited to,

-   -   Time of Day    -   Length of Call    -   Number of Calls per Day    -   Type of Calls    -   Daily Spend    -   Personal ID Number    -   Shared ID Number    -   Activity Notifications    -   Facility    -   Resident ID    -   Call forwarding.

Additionally, settings can be provided to allow the user to specifywindows of time, such as day-of-week or hour-of-day, during which callsmay or may not be received by the particular Called Party Profile.Further, the Customer Profile Interface process 123 provides methods forallowing the user to specify the scope of the calling activity for whicha particular Called Party Profile is valid. A first scope specificationcan be used to limit calling activity to include or exclude calls from aparticular residential facility, calls from a particular resident, orcalls from any resident or facility. In addition, a second scopespecification can be used to designate the types of calls for which theCalled Party Profile is valid. Types of calls may include, but not belimited to, collect calls, debit calls, prepaid calls, or free calls.

In an exemplary embodiment, the user can access client device 110 tointeract with Customer Profile Interface process 123 to setupcustomer-administered controls. The user can create a Called PartyProfile to define the customer-administered controls associated with theprofile. Customer-administered controls can be applied to all callingtypes, i.e. Debit, Calling Card, Prepaid Account, Collect Calls, andFree Calls, etc. Additionally, the user can create additional profilesfor household members, e.g. a profile can be setup for a spouse thatallows for no restrictions, a profile can be setup for a child thatrestricts to time of day only, etc. If/when multiple profiles areactive, the user can associate Personal ID Numbers (PIN) with eachprofile. Preferably PINs are not be duplicated within a household.

In an exemplary embodiment, when a user accesses the Customer ProfileInterface process 123 via a web browser 113 in client device 110 andselects the customer-administered controls options, Customer ProfileInterface process 123 can present the user with a screen similar to thescreenshot illustrated in FIG. 4.

From this screen the user can have the option of creating, editing, ordeleting profiles and/or call forward numbers. The user can also enableor disable profiles/call forward numbers by selecting the appropriatecheck boxes.

When adding or editing a profile the user can be presented with a screensimilar to the screenshot in FIG. 5.

From this screen the user can define each profile associated with theaccount. The only required feature would be PINs if multiple profilesexist. If the user wishes to implement only one profile, then PINs wouldnot be required. The following paragraphs describe exemplary fields thatmight be presented to the user in an exemplary embodiment.

Time Calls are Allowed—Allows the user to set the time of day that aresident is allowed to call the specific number associated with theprofile (sometimes referred to herein as the “primary telephone number”or “PTN”). If only one profile exists and the resident attempts to callthe PTN outside of the allowed time, Call Control process 124 causes therestriction to be implemented and the resident is immediately told he orshe is only allowed to call the PTN between specified hours. If multipleprofiles exist, the call is connected to the PTN, and once the answeringparty enters his or her PIN Call Control process 124 checks the timesthat calls are allowed for the entered PIN. If the call is outside ofallowed calling times both the resident and party answering the phonecan be so informed. If Time Calls are Allowed is enabled both a startand end time are required. A drop down menu for hours can be providedfor 1-12, and a drop down menu for minutes can provide for 5 minuteincrements. If this option is disabled there would be no restriction onthe time of day when calls may be accepted.

Length of Call—Allows the user to set how long a called party associatedwith the profile is allowed to speak to a resident. Preferably, thissetting does not override or affect any facility restriction on maximumcall-length but allows the user to set a reduced amount of time that acalled party is allowed to speak with a resident. The drop down menu forsetting the number of minutes can be in 1 minute increments, up to 20minutes. For example, if a facility only allows a 10 minute call but theuser sets a restriction of 15 minutes, the call will only last 10minutes. However if a different facility allows for 20 minute calls,then a call from that facility but subject to the user's profile limitof 15 minutes would only last 15 minutes. The call would be billed atthe appropriate rate, i.e. if calls are a flat rate they can be billedthe full amount regardless of length. If calls are billed per minutethey will billed for minutes talked. If this option is disabled therewould be no restriction on the length of call the profile may receiveother than the facility maximum.

Daily Spend—Allows the user to set a restriction on monetary charges forcalls the profile is able to accept on a daily basis. Preferably thissetting would only apply to calls that the user is responsible forpaying, e.g. Collect and Pre Paid Collect. Free calls, debit calls, andcalling card calls would ignore this setting. If calls are billed on aper minute basis, the last call accepted that triggers the daily spendlimit can be restricted to the number of minutes left until the dailyspend reaches 0. If the calls are billed at a flat rate and a call wouldcause the profile to exceed its allowed daily spend, the call can bedenied. If this option is disabled there would be no restriction on thedaily spend for a profile.

Number of Calls per Day—Allows the user to set how many calls can beaccepted by a profile on a daily basis. If this option is disabled therewould be no restriction on the Number of Calls per Day the profile mayaccept.

Type of Calls—Allows the user to set what type of calls a profile canaccept. Preferably, valid options would be Collect, Debit, Calling Card,and Free. If this option is disabled the profile would not be restrictedon the type of calls it may accept.

Personal ID Number—Allows the user to assign to a profile a PIN thatwould be entered by the answering party at the time of call and verifiedagainst restrictions. This field can be required if the user createsmore than one profile. Preferably, the PIN can be configured to be a 4digit number and cannot be duplicated within a household.

Facility Name—Allows the user to set what facilities a profile may beable to receive calls from. If blank it is assumed that calls from anyaccessible facilities are acceptable. If only one profile exists and aresident tries to dial the PTN from a facility that is not allowed, theresident can receive a message that the PTN does not accept calls fromthe facility. If multiple profiles exist, the called party can enter aPIN at which time Call Control process 124 would verify that thefacility is able to call the profile. If the facility is not permittedto call the profile both the resident and called party can be told thatthe profile cannot accept calls from this facility. The facility namefield can contain a drop down box listing all accessible facilities.

Resident ID—Allows the user to set what Residents are allowed to call aprofile. If blank it is assumed that the profile may receive calls fromany resident. If an entry exists then only explicitly designatedresidents are allowed to call the profile. If only one profile existsand a resident who is not authorized calls the PTN, the resident canreceive a message telling him or her that he or she is unable to callthe PTN. If multiple profiles exist, the called party can be required toenter a PIN at which time Call Control process 124 can verify theresident is able to speak with the profile. If the resident is notpermitted to call the profile, both the resident and called party can beso informed.

In some embodiments, the Customer Profile Interface process 123 providesmethods for enabling the user to optionally choose a pre-shared codeassociated with each particular Called Party Profile. This pre-sharedcode is distinct from the non-shared PIN associated with the particularCalled Party Profile and is to be known by the resident initiating thecall from the residential facility and is used to indicate to whichparticular Called Party Profile he or she wishes to initiate a call.Thus, as described in the next paragraph Customer Profile Interfaceprocess 123 can include a “Shared ID Number” option.

Shared ID Number—Allows the user to create a shared PIN which will thenbe shared with the resident to identify the intended caller. Preferably,the shared ID number may not be duplicated within a household. If thisoption is disabled the resident will not have the ability to direct thecall to a specific profile.

In some embodiments, the Customer Profile Interface process 123 providesmethods and techniques for enabling users to add, modify, or removealternate or secondary contact addresses for each particular CalledParty Profile. These secondary contact addresses may occur in multipleforms, including, but not limited to, standard PSTN telephone numbers,electronic mail addresses, VOIP endpoint addresses and/or VOIP serviceuser IDs, such as those employed by Skype and other well-known services.Further, the Customer Profile interface process 123 enables the user toindicate a preference for each secondary contact address, indicatingwhether or not charges shall be billed to the primary account number forany calling activity which is eventually completed via connection to theparticular secondary contact address.

In some embodiments, the Customer Profile Interface process providesmethods enabling the user to indicate a preference of whether or notthey would like to be notified whenever calling activity associated withthe particular Called Party Profile occurs. In the instance where theuser does indicate a preference to receive notifications, options can bepresented allowing them to select their preferred mode of communicationand corresponding address. The preferred mode of communication mayinclude, but not be limited to, notification by electronic mail, SMS, orautomated telephone (IVR) system. Thus, as described in the nextparagraph Customer Profile Interface process 123 can include an“Activity Notifications” option.

Activity Notifications—Allows the user to receive messages anytime aresident call is accepted at their household. When this option isactive, Notification process 126 causes a notification to be sent,preferably either by SMS or Email, to an account defined by the user.Preferably the notification can contain the date/time of call, the PINaccepting the call if required, and the length of the call.

Implementing such functionality of alternative embodiments may involvemodifying one or more of the features of the exemplary embodimentsdisclosed herein.

Call Control Process

Some embodiments further provide a Call Control process 124. CallControl process 124 responds to a request from a resident to place acall and performs the functions of gathering information relative toCalled Party Profiles associated with the requested destinationtelephone number and, optionally, prompting the resident to input thepre-shared code for a particular Called Party Profile. Further, CallControl process 124 causes the specified call limitations to be imposedas indicated in the applicable Called Party Profile(s), by preventing orlimiting the call as appropriate, as well as performing other actions asspecified in the applicable Called Party Profile(s), including, but notlimited to, attempting to complete the call via the specified secondarycontact addresses, authenticating the called party via the specific PINassociated with the Called Party Profile, appropriately applying callcharges for secondary contact addresses, and initiating any specifiednotifications via a request to the Notification system.

When a resident places a call, Call Control process 124 accesses theCalled Party Profiles associated with the called number to ascertainwhich controls are in place for the called number. If only one profileis active, Call Control process 124 respects the profile, and the callis placed accordingly—e.g. if there is only one active profile thatcontains a time of day restriction of 5 pm-8:30 pm and the residentattempts to call at 4:45 pm, the resident will be told that he or she isonly able to call the PTN between the hours of 5 pm-8:30 pm. If/whenmultiple profiles exist the call can be connected to the PTN and thecalled party's PIN can be requested. Once the PIN has been entered CallControl process 124 examines the controls that are in place for thespecific PIN and cause the restrictions in the specific profile to beenforced, e.g. if the PIN entered belongs to someone with time of dayrestrictions and the call is outside of those restrictions the residentand called party can both be informed. If the PIN entered belongs tosomeone with no restrictions the call proceeds as normal. If shared PINsare used and the resident has directed a call to a specific profile,Call Control process 124 examines the profile restrictions and causesthem to be implemented prior to the call being connected to the PTN.

FIG. 2 illustrates a call flow process according to certain embodiments.Process 200 starts at box 201 when the resident initiates a call to aspecific telephone number. At box 202, the process queries the CalledNumber Validation process 125 for any Called Party Profiles. At decisionbox 203, if Called Party Profiles do not exist then the process branchesto box 204 and standard call processing is implemented. If at decisionbox 203 one or more Called Party Profiles do exist, then at box 205 theprocess prompts the resident to enter a shared PIN to direct the call toa particular called party and then attempts to connect the call at box206. If at decision box 207 the call is not answered, then the processbranches to decision box 207 where it is determined whether there is aCalled Party Profile with the entered shared PIN. If there is a CalledParty Profile with the entered shared PIN, then the process branches todecision box 209 to ascertain whether there additional contact numbersassociated with the Called Party Profile to which the call should beforwarded. If at decision box 209 the answer is no, then the processbranches to box 210 and the call ends. If at decision box 209 the answeris yes, the process branches back to box 206 and proceeds. If atdecision box 208 it is determined that there is no Called Party Profileassociated with the entered shared PIN, the process branches to box 210and the call ends.

If at decision box 207 the call is answered, then at box 211 the processprompts the answering party to enter a valid PIN. At decision box 211,if a valid PIN is not entered, then the process branches to box 210 andthe call ends. If at decision box 212 the entered PIN is determined tobe valid then at box 213 the call proceeds and any limitationsassociated with the Called Party Profile are imposed. If at decision box214 the associated limitations are not reached, the call continues atbox 213 until they are reached. Once the associated limitations arereached, the process branches to box 215 where appropriate charges areapplied to the account. At decision box 216, if no notifications arespecified for the Called Party Profile, the process branches to box 210and the call ends. Otherwise if at decision box 216 there are associatednotifications, these notifications are initiated at box 217 viaNotification system 126 and the process then branches to box 210 wherethe call ends.

In an exemplary scenario, when a resident goes off hook to place a callhe or she will enter the PTN, which Call Control process 124 then checksagainst the customer-administered controls as defined in Called PartyProfiles associated with the PIN. If shared PINs are used Call Controlprocess 124 can ask the resident for the shared PIN of the person theresident wishes to contact. If the resident chooses not to enter ashared PIN then Call Control process 124 treats the call as if it is foranyone at the PIN. When the called party answers he or she would hear astandard message, for example “This is a call from <Resident Name> aresident at the <Facility Name> . . . ” Von the other hand the residententers a shared PIN, then before acceptance options are provided theresident would further receive the following exemplary message “Theresident is calling for <Profile Name>.” The system would then ask forthe shared PIN to be entered. If the entered PIN does not match up withthe shared PIN, the called party would be told they are not the intendedrecipient and to either enter the correct PIN or hang up. If CallControl process 124 does not receive the correct PIN, the resident canbe told that the intended recipient is not available and to try the callagain later.

In some embodiments, the user can also set up call forwarding in theevent the call to the PTN is not answered. Preferably Call Controlprocess 124 applies call forwarding at the account level for allprofiles rather than at a profile level. In an exemplary embodiment, theuser enters a telephone number, such as for example a cell phone number,as a forwarding number into the appropriate Called Party Profile(s).When the resident dials the primary PTN, if the PTN is answered the callproceeds as normal. However, if the PTN is not answered Call Controlprocess 124 then attempts to call the cell phone number stored in theCalled Party Profile. In the event a call is forwarded successfully, thecall detail record (“CDR”) is marked as such, where preferably the CDRcontains the original dialed number by the resident and the number wherethe call was answered. Once the call is answered it proceeds as normal,including the processing of any customer-administered controls.Customer-administered controls and call forwarding are preferablyexclusive of each other and need not be designed to require bothfeatures to function and may function independently.

In some embodiments, the user can also have the ability to set up callforwarding for each profile. In this embodiment, a child account wouldnot be able to self-fund, and all funds would be applied at the parentlevel. If a child account wanted to become self-funded it would be movedout from under the primary account and would become its own primaryaccount. Additionally the child account could have a completelydifferent set of phone numbers to call from the primary account.

In some embodiments, if call forwarding is enabled at the profile level,the phone numbers for each profile to which calls can be forwarded canbe completely different from the call forwarding numbers associated withthe primary account. In an exemplary scenario, when the first number isdialed if the call is not answered or accepted then Call Control process124 can cause the second number to be dialed (and so-forth). Similarly,if the call is answered but not accepted Call Control process 124 canattempt to call the second number. This approach compensates for theevent of answering machines, modems, faxes, etc automatically answeringthe phone. Furthermore, the called party can be given the option toterminate the call forwarding option each time the phone is answered.This mechanism allows a party to refuse a call without the systemautomatically trying to call additional phone numbers. Otherwise if thecalled party were to simply hang up without terminating the call forwardoption, the system would interpret the hang up as non-acceptance andwould try the next number.

In some embodiments, Call Control process 124 can utilize a dynamic menuin lieu of a standard menu to offer the resident only the options thatare available to that particular resident or that are associated withthe particular dialed number. Consider the following exemplary call flowdescribed in FIG. 3 according to certain embodiments. The process 300starts at a main menu with only two available options—1) place a call301 and 2) other options 302. Upon the resident selecting to place acall, Call Control process 124 then instructs the caller to enter thephone number at box 302. If 10 digits are entered, Call Control process124 treats the call as a domestic call as shown in boxes 303 and 304.Otherwise if more than 10 digits are entered the call is treated as aninternational call as shown in boxes 303 and 305. If the residentselects other options as in box 306, then exemplary options are as shownin boxes 307 through 310. If the resident is placing a domestic call asshown starting at box 311, then only calling options that are availableto the resident are presented to the resident caller in this exemplaryscenario. For example, as shown in boxes 313 and 314 if the call is alocal call and has been dialed from a “Free Phone” the call can beprocessed without any further interaction from the resident. Inapproaches that utilize standard menus instead of the dynamic menus ofthis exemplary scenario, the resident may need to select Free Local Callas an option from a main menu. If in this exemplary scenario the call isnot a local call or is not free, Call Control process 124 then at box315 dynamically determines what options are available to the residentbased on the phone number. For example if customer-administered controlshave not been set up, the phone number is a prepaid account with noavailable funds, and the facility uses debit calling with fundsavailable to the resident, then the only option the resident willreceive is to call using debit funds as shown in boxes 316 and 319. Ifin another example customer-administered controls are enabled withmultiple profiles, Call Control process 124 can present the residentwith the names associated the profiles and give the resident the optionto select one of the profiles to which he wishes to connect as shown inboxes 320 through 324. As an example, the resident may select to callprofile 2, which has time of day restrictions and only accepts debitcalls. Call Control process 124 then implements the associatedlimitations as appropriate, as shown in exemplary fashion at boxes 325through 335. For example, if the resident is calling during the correcttime, the prepaid account has funds, and the resident's debit accounthas funds, then the only option Call Control process 124 would presentto the resident would be to place the call using the debit account, eventhough prepaid funds are available, since the profile only allows fordebit calls, in this exemplary scenario the resident does not need toknow a pre-shared PIN in order to select an individual to call as thesystem automatically gives him all available options. In the event theresident is not allowed to call a certain profile, then that profile canbe omitted from the list of profiles that Call Control process 124presents to the resident.

Implementing such functionality of alternative embodiments may involvemodifying one or more of the features of the exemplary embodimentsdisclosed herein.

Called Number Validation Process

Some embodiments further provide a Called Number Validation process.Called Number Validation process 125 verifies whether or not the TSP canbill the call to the Local Exchange Carrier and, if the the call cannotbe billed to the LEC, whether the primary account has a prepaid accountwith have funds. Business rules for the Called Number Validation Process125 may involve account blocks, balance, OCN, Val code, in-service date,BNA available, BNA name, and/or BNA address, or any other appropriatechecks. A balance check, for example, may involve checking whether thereis a balance greater than the average cost of the calls left beforereaching the credit limit. The Called Number Validation process 125 maydetermine whether the dialed number is on any facility block list, TSPharassment list, or similar such list. If the PTN is on any such listthe call is immediately denied.

Implementing such functionality of alternative embodiments may involvemodifying one or more of the features of the exemplary embodimentsdisclosed herein.

Notification Process

in some embodiments there is further provided a Notification process.Notification process 126 receives information from Call Control process124 specifying the address, content, and type of notification desiredand is responsible for ensuring delivery of the notification to thecustomer, utilizing a variety of delivery methods.

Implementing such functionality of alternative embodiments may involvemodifying one or more of the features of the exemplary embodimentsdisclosed herein.

Reporting Process

In some embodiments there are provided methods and techniques forincorporating a Reporting process into the institutional telephonesystem. Reporting process 127 provides reports to provide facilitypersonnel with lists of calls that were terminated on a secondary PTN asopposed to the primary number, calls that were terminated because theresident tried to call outside of allowed times or otherwise inviolation of the customer-administered call controls, lists of PTNs forwhich calls are refused by the answerer, and other similar reports tocharacterize the resident's calling activities undercustomer-administered controls.

Implementing such functionality of alternative embodiments may involvemodifying one or more of the features of the exemplary embodimentsdisclosed herein.

General

The foregoing descriptions of embodiments are to be understood as beingin every respect illustrative and exemplary, but not restrictive, andthe scope of the subject matter disclosed herein is not to be determinedonly from the detailed description of illustrative embodiments butaccording to the full breadth permitted by the patent laws. It is to beunderstood that the embodiments shown and described herein are onlyillustrative of the principles of the present subject matter and thatvarious modifications may be implemented by those skilled in the artwithout departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

We claim:
 1. A method comprising: an institutional communication systemproviding a customer account interface to a customer outside of aninstitution, wherein the customer provides funds for a customer accountto pay for calls made by a resident of the institution to multipleparties associated with the customer account, the multiple partiesoutside of the institution, the multiple parties receiving calls at oneor more telephone numbers; the customer account interface receivingcustomer input creating called party profiles for each of the multipleparties for the customer account, wherein each of the called partyprofiles is associated with a respective personal identification number(PIN) used to identify which of the multiple parties accepts arespective call from the resident; the customer account interfacereceiving customer input specifying party-specific limitations appliedto each of the called party profiles to limit how the funds may be usedby each of the multiple parties for calls from the resident, thelimitations providing call length limits or spending limits for callsfrom the resident for the called party profiles; and the institutionalcommunication system controlling calls from the resident to the multipleparties according to the limitations.
 2. The method of claim 1, whereinthe limitations provide party-specific call length limits for calls fromthe resident of the institution for the called party profiles.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the limitations provide party-specificspending limits for calls from the resident of the institution for thecalled party profiles.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the limitationsprovide party-specific daily spending limits for calls from the residentof the institution for the called party profiles.
 5. The method of claim1, wherein the limitations provide party-specific limits on how manycalls from the resident may be completed in a specified period of timefor the called party profiles.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising the institutional communication system notifying the customerof acceptance of a call from the resident by a particular party of themultiple parties.
 7. A method comprising: an institutional communicationsystem providing a customer account interface, wherein the customerprovides funds for a customer account to pay for calls made by aresident of the institution to the customer, the customer outside of theinstitution and receiving calls from the resident at a first telephonenumber; the customer account interface receiving customer input for thecustomer account specifying a second telephone number to use to forwardunanswered calls from the resident to the first telephone number; theinstitutional communication system receiving a call from the resident tothe first telephone number; the institutional communication systemdetermining that the call to the first telephone number has not beenanswered by the customer; based on determining that the call to thefirst telephone number has not been answered by the customer, theinstitutional communication system forwarding the call to the secondtelephone number; and the institutional communication system trackingthat the call was actually received at the second telephone number.